Illegal cable collector nabbed in Muntinlupa

Signal piracy operators and collectors are now paying the high price for their brand of thievery as barangay officials of Purok 6 in Barangay Cupang, Muntinlupa City have arrested an illegal cable collector, who has been making unauthorized collections from cable TV subscriber Ariel Alipit for the past two months.

Enrico Henson, 38, of Bagong Barrio, Caloocan was charged with estafa and falsification of public documents after Alipit tipped off barangay authorities while Henson waited for him at his residence to collect what was supposedly Alipit’s third monthly payment.

Investigation disclosed that a few months before the arrest, Alipit’s subscription to cable service provider SkyCable had been scheduled for disconnection because of his failure to meet payment deadlines.

However, a verbal agreement Alipit claimed he had with technicians of a CATV sub-contractor supposedly allowed him to continue his subscription upon payment of half of the total amount due.

As investigators found out that Henson, posing as a SkyCable payment collector, began collecting a P500 monthly subscription fee from Alipit without issuing a statement of account or any proof of billing.

Police are further investigating if Henson and the cable technicians are part of a syndicate preying upon unwitting CATV subscribers.

A general inspection procedure in the area, part of the mounting campaign by the Philippine Cable Television Association (PCTA) and local governments against cable piracy, revealed that Alipit was not a legitimate cable subscriber.

After realizing he was now classified as an illegal subscriber, Alipit informed barangay authorities of Henson’s two-month illegal activities. The barangay responded by setting up an entrapment operation to catch the suspect, in close cooperation with authorities.

"We suspect Henson may be part of a bigger group of illegal cable technicians and collectors. Authorities found in Henson’s possession some P1,500 in cash, apparently the proceeds from his illegal collections activities in various part of Metro Manila," according to the barangay officials.

Alipit also told authorities that collection dates were usually scheduled by Henson through text-messaging.

Authorities believe that this kind of operation is rampant in the entire metropolis.

Currently, House Bill 4665, or the Anti-Cable Television and Cable Internet Pilferage Act, has already been approved and endorsed for second reading by the House committee on information communications technology (ICT).

It is expected to be finalized before the second regular session of the 13th Congress adjourns in July.

Meanwhile, other Metro Manila cities are encouraged to follow on the efforts of Quezon City and Makati in enacting the Anti-CATV and Cable Internet Pilferage Ordinance, which penalizes perpetrators of signal theft.